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And that was that.

Wayne almost wished that there would be an invasion of aliens. Maybe they would kill off his damned creditors. He heard the sound of a car coming up the drive and rose and walked over to the window. Looked like an easterner.

Probably another creditor. These days they were coming out of the woodwork.

Dan Wayne opened the front door.

“Howdy.”

“Daniel Wayne?”

“My friends call me Dan. What can I do for you?”

Dan Wayne was not at all what Robert had expected. He had envisioned a stereotype of a burly Texan. Dan Wayne was slight and aristocratic-looking, with an almost shy manner. The only thing that gave away his heritage was his accent.

“I wonder if I might have a few minutes of your time?”

“That’s about all I’ve got left,” Wayne said. “By the way, you’re not a creditor, are you?”

“A creditor? No.”

“Good. Come on in.”

The two men walked into the living room. It was large and comfortably furnished with western-style furniture.

“This is a nice place you have here,” Robert said.

“Yeah. I was born in this house. Can I offer you anything? A cold drink, maybe?”

“No, thanks. I’m fine.”

“Have a seat.”

Robert sat down on a soft leather couch.

“What did you want to see me about?”

“I believe you took a bus tour in Switzerland last week?”

“That’s right. Is my ex-wife having me followed? You don’t work for her, do you?”

“No, sir.”

“Oh.” He suddenly understood. “You’re interested in that UFO thing. Damnedest thing I ever saw. It kept changing colours. And those dead aliens!” He shuddered. “I keep dreaming about it.”

“Mr Wayne, can you tell me anything about the other passengers who were on that bus?”

“Sorry, I can’t help you out there. I was travelling alone.”

“I know, but you spoke to some of the other passengers, didn’t you?”

“To tell you the truth, I had a lot on my mind. I wasn’t paying much attention to anyone else.”

“Do you remember anything about any of them?”

Dan Wayne was silent for a moment. “Well, there was an Italian priest. I talked to him quite a bit. He seemed like a nice fellow. I want to tell you something, that flying saucer thing really shook him up. He kept talking about the devil.”

“Did you speak to anyone else?”

Dan Wayne shrugged. “Not really … wait a minute. I talked a little bit to some fellow who owns a bank in Canada.” He ran his tongue across his lips. “To tell you the truth, I’m having a little financial problem here with the ranch. It looks as though I might lose it. I hate goddamn bankers. They’re all blood-suckers. Anyway, I thought this fellow might be different. When I found out he was a banker, I talked to him about trying to work out some kind of loan arrangement here. But he was just like all the rest of them. He couldn’t have been less interested.”

“You said he was from Canada.”

“Yeah, Fort Smith, up in the Northwest Territories. I’m afraid that’s about all I can tell you.”

Robert tried to conceal his excitement. “Thank you, Mr Wayne, you’ve been very helpful.” Robert rose.

“That’s it?”

“That’s it.”

“Would you like to stay for supper?”

“No, thanks. I have to be on my way. Good luck with the ranch.”

“Thanks.”

Fort Smith, Canada, Northwest Territories.

Robert waited until General Hilliard came on the line.

“Yes, Commander?”

“I found another witness. Dan Wayne. He owns The Ponderosa, a ranch outside of Waco, Texas.”

“Very good. I’ll have our office in Dallas speak to him.”

FLASH MESSAGE

TOP SECRET ULTRA

NSA TO DEPUTY DIRECTOR DCI

EYES ONLY

COPY ONE OF (ONE) COPIES

SUBJECT: OPERATION DOOMSDAY

6. DANIEL WAYNE – WACO

END OF MESSAGE

In Langley, Virginia, the Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency studied the transmission thoughtfully. Number six. Things were going well. Commander Bellamy was doing an extraordinary job. The decision to select him had been a wise one. Janus had been right. The man was always right. And he had the power to have his wishes carried out. So much power … The Director looked at the message again. Make it look like an accident, he thought. That shouldn’t be difficult. He pressed a buzzer.

The two men arrived at the ranch in a dark blue van. They parked in the courtyard and got out of the car, carefully looking around. Dan Wayne’s first thought was that they had come to take possession of the ranch. He opened the door for them.

“Dan Wayne?”

“Yes. What can I …?”

That was as far as he got.

The second man had stepped behind him and hit him hard across the skull with a blackjack.

The larger of the two men slung the unconscious rancher over his shoulder and carried him outside to the barn. There were eight horses in the barn. The men ignored them and walked to the last stall at the back. Inside was a beautiful black stallion.

The large man said, “This is the one.” He put Wayne’s body down.